Stocks close lower as S&P 500, Nasdaq retreat from record highs

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed lower Thursday, marking a pullback from their rally to record highs.

The broad-market index fell 0.28% to 6,735.11 at the closing bell, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished 0.08% lower at 23,024.63. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 243.36 points, or 0.52%, to 46,358.42.

— Liz Napolitano

A softening labor market could be a benefit to stocks, according to Raymond James.

“For now, softness in the labor market is the equity market’s best friend, as it creates bullishness in long term bonds as the bond market hopes for recession, while consumer spending and GDP growth [remain] robust due to the combination of strong consumer spending from top income cohorts, and AI related capital spending, which is having increasingly broad impacts on the economy (and driving improved earnings expectations),” equity strategist Tavis McCourt wrote.

Earlier this month, ADP reported an unexpected drop in September private payrolls data compared to analyst estimates. The figures marked their biggest decline since March 2023, fueling concerns around labor market weakening.

— Sean Conlon

Lowe’s Companies’ stock is on track to go lower for the ninth week straight amid a softening housing market.

The home improvement company’s shares have fallen 8% over that period, marking its longest losing streak since 2018. The stock also traded down on 17 of the past 18 days.

Lowe’s shares dipped roughly 1% on the day.

— Liz Napolitano

The S&P 500 is pacing for its 33rd straight trading day without a 1% move in either direction.

That marks the longest period since a 71-day streak ended in January 2020.

S&P 500, year-to-date

Shares of gold miners fell as bullion fell below $4,000 per ounce as the recently rally takes a breather.

The mining stocks Newmont and Barrick are down about 4% and 3%, respectively. Gold futures closed more than 2% lower at $3,972.60 per ounce after breaking $4,000 for the first time this week.

— Spencer Kimball

SBUX 5D chart

If the coffee retail chain ends the week at this level, this would mark its worst weekly performance in two months. Starbucks ended the week of Friday, Aug. 1 with a loss of 8.01%.

— Adrian van Hauwermeiren, Lisa Kailai Han

Jefferies downgraded Freshpet to hold from buy Thursday.

“An abrupt and persistent slowdown, tough comps for 9 mos, and the lack of a near-term catalyst tells us that current trends (10% growth) need to be carried forward,” analyst Kaumil Gajrawala said in a note to clients.

The pet food products manufacturer isn’t attracting new customers at the same rate as it once did, while existing customers are spending less, he wrote.

Shares were down in afternoon trading.

— Michelle Fox

On Thursday, 19 stocks in the S&P 500 reached new all-time highs.

Names that hit this milestone included:

• Garmin trading at all-time highs back to its IPO in December 2000
• Ralph Lauren trading at all-time highs back to its IPO in June 1997
• Monster Beverage (formerly Hansen Natural)trading at all-time high levels back to its listing on the NASDAQ in 1992
• Interactive Brokers Grouptrading at all-time highs back to its IPO in May 2007
• Johnson & Johnson trading at all-time high levels back to its IPO on the NYSE in 1944
• Northrop Grummantrading at all-time highs back to the merger between Northrop Aircraft and Grumman Aerospace in 1994
• Advanced Micro Devicestrading at all-time high levels back to its IPO in September 1972
• NVIDIAtrading at all-time high levels back to its IPO in January 1999
• Constellation Energytrading at all-time high levels back to its spin-off from Exelon in January 2022

On the other hand, the five stocks in the index trading at new 52-week lows were Kraft Heinz, Kimberly-Clark, Procter & Gamble, Amcor and UDR.

— Lisa Kailai Han

GoodRx, over 1 day

Two funding bills that could end the federalgovernment shutdownfailed to pass in Senate votes for the seventh time on Thursday.

The votes on duelingRepublican and Democraticstop-gap funding proposals came on the ninth day of the shutdown, and as fallout from the crisis spread. Read more.

— Erin Doherty

The market could be met with a serious correction in the near to medium term, according to JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon.

In an interview with the BBC, the head of the biggest bank in the U.S. said he was “far more worried about that than others” about such a move.

“I would give it a higher probability than I think is probably priced in the market and by others, so if the market is pricing in 10%, I would … say it’s more like 30%,” he said. “It could be six months; it could be two years.”

Dimon also said that he believed the U.S. had become “a little less reliable” partner in the aftermath of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

— Sean Conlon

• Oracle— Shares of the software company rose more than 3% on Thursday afterBaird initiated coveragewith a outperform rating and a $365 price taget. The firm said Oracle has a strong position in the artificial intelligence growth story. The stock has had a wild ride in recent sessions as investors debated its outlook. Week to date, shares have gained 4%.
• MP Materials— Shares of the rare earth materials producer rose 7%. BMO Capital Markets reinstated coverage at a market perform rating, calling MP the U.S.′ “rare earth champion” following a partnership with the Department of Defense. Meanwhile, China said ittightened rare earth export controlsahead of a potential meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
• Albemarle,Lithium Americas— Shares of lithium producers also rose as China looks to require export licenses for some types of lithium ion batteries. Albemarle gained 7%, while Lithium Americas added about 3%.

Read here for the full list.

— Christina Cheddar Berk

Ferarri‘s U.S. shares are sputtering out.

Shares tumbled more than 14% on Thursday, putting the stock on pace for its worst day in its 10-year history. Thursday’s decline came after the automaker gave downbeat guidance.

Ferrari, 1-day

With Thursday’s drop, the stock is now down more than 3% for 2025.

— Alex Harring, Sam Meredith

Rick Rieder, BlackRock’s chief investment officer of global fixed income, performed “very well” in his interview with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent for Federal Reserve chair, the Financial Times reported, citing sources.

The meetings of 11 candidates to replace Jerome Powell concluded on Tuesday, the Financial Times said. Other names on the list include former Fed Governors Kevin Warsh and Lawrence Lindsey, as well as James Bullard, who had served as president of the St. Louis Fed, sources told CNBC.

Rieder’s interview occurred in September, sources told CNBC at the time. The conversation focused on monetary policy and structural issues related to the central bank, they said.

Rieder recently released his fourth-quarter fixed-income outlooking, telling CNBC that while there is still a “generational opportunity” to grab income, the opportunity is maturing.

— Michelle Fox, Jeff Cox

Shares of U.S. rare earth and critical mineral miners surged Thursday after China tightened restrictions on exports, fueling market speculation that the Trump administration will move more aggressively to invest in building out a domestic supply chain.

Ramaco Resourcessoared 12%,Energy Fuelssurged nearly 8%,USA Rare Earthjumped more than 7% andMP Materialsrallied over 6%.Lithium Americaspopped more than 4% andTrilogy Metalsrose over 6%.

Beijing is now requiringforeign entities to obtain a licenseto export products that contain more than 0.1% of domestically sourced rare earths, according to China’s Ministry of Commerce. Companies will also need export licenses if they use China’s extraction, refining or magnet recycling technology.

“The White House and relevant agencies are closely assessing any impact from the new rules, which were announced without any notice and imposed in an apparent effort to exert control over the entire world’s technology supply chains,” an administration official told CNBC. Read more.

— Spencer Kimball

John Williams, who holds an influential policy position as president of the New York Federal Reserve, favors further interest rate cuts this year, though did not specify how many in a New York Times interview.

A permanent voting member on the Federal Open Market Committee, Williams said he would support “lower rates this year, but we’ll have to see exactly what that means.”

Like other Fed officials, he expressed concern over weakness in the labor market while noting “We still have our eye very much on inflation.”

The FOMC in September penciled in two more cuts this year — presumably one at each of the two remaining meetings — but there was a narrow division against those who see only one.

— Jeff Cox

Citi has upgraded Tractor Supply Company, according to an analyst note dated Thursday.

The investment firm upgraded the company to buy from hold. It hiked its price target for shares to $62 from $60.

“Big picture, TSCO is a defensive growth retailer not dependent upon a housing market recovery to return to algo growth and trading at a discount to the retail market share winners’ basket,” Citi analysts said in the note.

Tractor Supply shares have pulled back since last August. The stock is down nearly 6% over the past three months.

— Liz Napolitano

Gold prices held above $4,000 an ounce on Thursday as investors assessed the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal, while broader geopolitical and economic uncertainty alongside expectations for U.S. rate cuts sustained bullish sentiment towards the metal.

Silver hit a record high, bolstered by gold’s record-breaking rally, growing investor demand and a supply deficit.

Spot gold was steady at $4,038.49 per ounce. U.S. gold futures for December delivery fell 0.3% to $4,057.80.

Silver was up 1.5% at $49.63 per ounce. The metal has gained over 70% this year, benefiting from the same factors as those driving gold’s rally as well as tightness in the spot market.

— Reuters

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rose to fresh all-time intraday highs on Thursday morning.

The broad market S&P 500 jumped 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq traded up about 0.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also climbed 61 points, or 0.1%.

— Sean Conlon

Here are some of the names making moves before the bell:

• Ferrari — Shares dropped 12% after the luxury carmaker trimmed its electrification targets. Ferrari said it expects its 2030 sports car model line-up to include 20% fully electric vehicles. That’s down from its prior target of 40% EV sales by the end of the decade.
• MP Materials — The rare earth materials producer’s stock gained 4.2%. China said it tightened rare earth export controls ahead of a potential meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Meanwhile, BMO Capital Markets reinstated coverage at a market perform rating, calling MP the U.S.’ “rare earth champion” following a partnership with the Department of Defense.
• Oklo — The nuclear technology company added nearly 3% after Canaccord Genuity initiated coverage of the stock company with a Buy rating. The firm anticipates strong long-term demand for nuclear energy, with Oklo emerging as a leader.

To see more stocks moving in premarket trading, read the full story here.

— Michelle Fox

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell delivered welcoming remarks Thursday to a community bank conference in Washington, D.C. However, the central bank chief did not touch on monetary policy.

In remarks delivered via recorded message, Powell noted that the Fed has “long been committed to tailoring our supervisory practices as appropriate for community banks to reduce unnecessary burden, while still ensuring that community banks continue to operate in a safe and sound manner.”

— Jeff Cox

Shares of Costco rose more than 1% in the premarket on Thursday on the heels of the big-box retail giant reporting an increase in net sales for September and the first few days of October compared to a year ago.

For the five-week period ended Oct. 5, Costco saw $26.58 billion in net sales. That’s up 8% from the $24.62 billion it saw last year.

Additionally, total comparable sales saw a gain of 5.7%, with the U.S. specifically seeing a 5.1% rise in the period. Canada, meanwhile, had a 6.3% jump in comparable sales, and other international markets grew 8.5%.

COST, 1-day

Oraclecould be still be poised to take advantage of the craze in artificial intelligence and generate big returns for investors, according to Baird.

The firm initiated coverage of the name with an outperform rating and set its price target at $365, which implies that shares could rise 27% from their Wednesday closing price. Analyst Rob Oliver pointed to Oracle’s strong positioning as an AI growth story.

“We view ORCL as very well positioned to benefit from the accelerating spend on AI infrastructure, and the convergence of AI, data and use-cases that will emerge from the move from training to inference,” the analyst wrote. CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

ORCL, 6-month

The move comes just days after a drop in Oracle shares weighed on the broader market following a report that the software company is seeing lighter margins on its cloud business and facing trouble renting out Nvidia chips.

Despite the recent pullback, the name has still seen a big run-up in shares over the last few months, with the stock soaring more than 106% in the last six.

— Lisa Kailai Han, Sean Conlon

Delta Air Lines shares rose more than 5% after the company issued strong guidance and posted third-quarter results that beat analyst expectations.

The airline earned an adjusted $1.71 per share on revenue of $15.2 billion. Analysts expected by LSEG expected a profit of $1.53 per share on revenue of $15.06 billion. Delta also issued fourth-quarter earnings guidance that exceeded estimates.

— Fred Imbert

Akero Therapeutics shares rallied nearly 20% after the biopharma company announced it would be acquired by Novo Nordisk for $54 per share, or $4.7 billion, in cash.

Akero makes drugs aimed at treating metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, or MASH. Its efruxifermindrug, EFX, is in phase 3 trials.

“If approved, we believe it could become a cornerstone therapy, alone or together with Wegovy(semaglutide), to tackle one of the fastest-growing metabolic diseases of our time. This acquisition embodies Novo Nordisk’s relentless ambition to move faster, go further, and ultimately deliver on our commitment to pursue leadership in diabetes, obesity and their associated comorbidities,” Novo Nordisk CEO Mike Doustdar said in a statement.

Novo Nordisk shares fell nearly 2%.

— Fred Imbert

PepsiCo shares rose in the premarket after the snacks and beverage giant reported third-quarter results that beat analyst expectations.

The company earned an adjusted $2.29 per share on revenue of $23.94 billion. Analysts expected a profit of $2.26 per share on revenue of $23.83 billion, according to LSEG.

The stock was last up about 1%.

PEP 5-day chart

BCA Research strategists noted that, while gold’s rally to record highs appears unstoppable, the metal could still take a hit due to macro headwinds.

“Gold’s decisive break above $4,000/oz … reinforces the structural bull case driven by persistent central bank demand and mounting fiscal concerns globally,” they said in a note to clients. “These structural forces have overwhelmed the yellow metal’s historically inverse relationship with real yields and the greenback.”

“However, when adjusted for its long-term appreciation trend, gold price still exhibits a clear inverse sensitivity to real rates and the USD, confirming that cyclical factors continue to shape near-term volatility. This pattern highlights that while gold’s structural uptrend remains intact, tactical corrections are likely when real rates firm or the dollar strengthens,” they added.

Gold futures are up more than 53% year to date.

Gold futures year to date

Bassett Furniture Industries fell nearly 2% in extended trading on Wednesday despite showing an improvement in earnings from a year ago.

The company earned 9 cents per share on $80.1 million in revenue for the third quarter. In the same period a year prior, Bassett lost 52 cents a share and saw revenue of $75.6 million.

Bassett shares rallied 5.7% in Wedneday’s session as the report loomed. The stock is up more than 21% in 2025.

— Alex Harring

Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were all near flat shortly after 6 p.m. ET.

— Alex Harring